Leafy Greens Boost Brain Power in Kids

Here’s another reason children should eat their green veggies: Doing so might help them perform better at school. In two studies involving a total of 105 children ages 8 to 10, researchers measured eye levels of lutein, a pigment found in green leafy vegetables that accumulates in the brain. In one study, children with higher lutein levels performed better during a challenging mental task than those with lower levels of the pigment. In the second study, children with higher lutein levels did better on standardized academic tests than their peers. The findings held true in both studies even after accounting for other factors that contribute to school performance, such as IQ and physical fitness. Help your kids get plenty of lutein by serving up foods such as leafy greens and egg yolks.Sources:International Journal of Psychophysiology, published online May 19, 2017; Nutritional Neuroscience, published online May 23, 2017